BBC新闻[翻译]：法国经济部长称美国或挑起贸易战争

President Trump has formally set in motion controversial plans for steep new tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium. He signed two declarations at the White House, defying widespread fears of a trade war. The tariffs of 25% on steel imports and 10% on aluminium will apply to all countries except Canada and Mexico, which will be exempt by discussions over the North America Free Trade Agreement continue. From Washington, here is Nick Bryant. History is often written with the presidential pen and with steel workers who helped him win the White House to the shoulder, Donald Trump added his name to a signature campaign promise, putting America first by imposing tariffs on foreign steel and aluminium. Defending America's industrial heartland has prompted his most protectionist move yet. When the challenges the rules based international system that has promoted free trade, when the strikes blow against the very idea of globalization, the integration of worldwide commerce from which many American workers and the Rust Belts especially feel excluded.

France's Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire has warned that there were only be losers in any trade war resulting from Mr. Trump's tariffs. He said France would assess the impact with its EU partners and agreed in an appropriate response. Brazil, as the second largest steel supplier to the US, said it would take all necessary actions to preserve its interests, hinting retaliatory moves. In the US itself, the speaker of the US House of Representatives Paul Ryan denounced the tariffs. I really think that the best policy is to be surgical and specific and go after those specific unfair trade practices, because they are unfair, but the president tried to point that out. I'm just not a fan of broad-based, across-the-board tariffs because I think you'll have a lot of unintended consequences. You'll have a lot of collateral damage，not just consumers but businesses.

President Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort has pleaded not guilty to new CRIminal charges, stemming from the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. He's accused of bank and tax fraud in relation to lobbying work he carried out for the Russia-backed former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.